‹ Prequel: Warmness on the Soul
The Way You Look Tonight
Gone
The Day of her father’s funeral was the hardest day Grace had and probably would ever face. She got up around eight and went into her dad’s music room. Sitting down behind the piano she allowed her fingers to gently dance across the keys, playing the piece of music her dad had been working on and left lying out. It was entitled; ‘Grace’.
It was for her.
The tears were forming and her hands were shaking, her whole body starting to convulse and rack with sobs. How was she going to say goodbye when she couldn’t even think about him and not cry?
How was she going to get through this without Brian?
She knew he wasn’t treating her right but when it came to friendships Brian was had the strongest one with her. She could turn to him and he’d help her.
The floorboards creaked behind her and she turned around to see her brothers there in the doorway, watching her cry, not really know what to do. She ushered them towards her and they pulled her into a hug.
Once she’d calmed down she went for a shower, the hot water seemed to pierce through her skin, adding to her inner pain. But she never turned it down.
Grace got out the shower, dried and straightened her hair and applied some waterproof black mascara. She then went over to her door where her long sleeved deep red dress was hanging, it was her dad’s favourite colour and he’d always said that when he died he didn’t want anyone to wear black. He didn’t want people to mourn his death, but to celebrate his life. Grace intended to.
They got into the black funeral cars and got to the funeral parlour in no time. Everyone filed out the car, her brothers went inside to make sure everything was on schedule and going to plan and Grace and her mother stayed outside to thank people for coming, after all, nearly everyone had flown in from Scotland.
Grace finished embracing the last of her cousins and was about to walk into the viewing room when she heard someone call her name, she turned round and there stood the guys and their girls, her best friends, and in the middle, the shoulder she needed to cry on; Brian. He came over and wrapped his long arms around her in a more-than-comforting embrace.
“Your brother called us, we figured you might need someone to cry on…” Brian voice rang out, though slightly muffled by her hair.
He wrapped his arm around her waist and began directing her into the parlour, when Zacky detached himself from Gena and wrapped and arm around her opposite shoulder, bringing yet more tears to her eyes.
Her father was to be cremated as he had never liked the idea of being a feast for worms. The service was short, her father was never one to mince his words, he read Psalm 23 and, as requested by her father before his death as a joke, played ‘Reach Out, I’ll Be There’ by The Four Tops. His best friend and brother made a speech and then, unexpectedly, Grace’s mother rose.
She walked towards the lectern, head high, with a mascara stained Kleenex in her hand. She looked down at her hands and sighed a jutting sigh.
“You never think about losing the one person you love the most. I suppose you just assume it’ll never happen like, like you’ll always be with them. Kevin, he, uh, he wasn’t just the love of my life - soul mate if you will, no, he was a loving father, a dedicated surgeon, musician, you name it and it was him. He was everything to me, but most of all, he was my best friend. He promised he’d always be there for me, guide me, show me the way.” she walked over to the casket getting slightly hysterical, “Where are you now? Why aren’t you here? How, how am I going to survive without you?” she put her hand on the casket and fell to her knees. Grace and Kevin rushed over to help their grief-torn mother back to her seat, holding her close, whispering things to calm her down.
And then the casket was gone.
It was for her.
The tears were forming and her hands were shaking, her whole body starting to convulse and rack with sobs. How was she going to say goodbye when she couldn’t even think about him and not cry?
How was she going to get through this without Brian?
She knew he wasn’t treating her right but when it came to friendships Brian was had the strongest one with her. She could turn to him and he’d help her.
The floorboards creaked behind her and she turned around to see her brothers there in the doorway, watching her cry, not really know what to do. She ushered them towards her and they pulled her into a hug.
Once she’d calmed down she went for a shower, the hot water seemed to pierce through her skin, adding to her inner pain. But she never turned it down.
Grace got out the shower, dried and straightened her hair and applied some waterproof black mascara. She then went over to her door where her long sleeved deep red dress was hanging, it was her dad’s favourite colour and he’d always said that when he died he didn’t want anyone to wear black. He didn’t want people to mourn his death, but to celebrate his life. Grace intended to.
They got into the black funeral cars and got to the funeral parlour in no time. Everyone filed out the car, her brothers went inside to make sure everything was on schedule and going to plan and Grace and her mother stayed outside to thank people for coming, after all, nearly everyone had flown in from Scotland.
Grace finished embracing the last of her cousins and was about to walk into the viewing room when she heard someone call her name, she turned round and there stood the guys and their girls, her best friends, and in the middle, the shoulder she needed to cry on; Brian. He came over and wrapped his long arms around her in a more-than-comforting embrace.
“Your brother called us, we figured you might need someone to cry on…” Brian voice rang out, though slightly muffled by her hair.
He wrapped his arm around her waist and began directing her into the parlour, when Zacky detached himself from Gena and wrapped and arm around her opposite shoulder, bringing yet more tears to her eyes.
Her father was to be cremated as he had never liked the idea of being a feast for worms. The service was short, her father was never one to mince his words, he read Psalm 23 and, as requested by her father before his death as a joke, played ‘Reach Out, I’ll Be There’ by The Four Tops. His best friend and brother made a speech and then, unexpectedly, Grace’s mother rose.
She walked towards the lectern, head high, with a mascara stained Kleenex in her hand. She looked down at her hands and sighed a jutting sigh.
“You never think about losing the one person you love the most. I suppose you just assume it’ll never happen like, like you’ll always be with them. Kevin, he, uh, he wasn’t just the love of my life - soul mate if you will, no, he was a loving father, a dedicated surgeon, musician, you name it and it was him. He was everything to me, but most of all, he was my best friend. He promised he’d always be there for me, guide me, show me the way.” she walked over to the casket getting slightly hysterical, “Where are you now? Why aren’t you here? How, how am I going to survive without you?” she put her hand on the casket and fell to her knees. Grace and Kevin rushed over to help their grief-torn mother back to her seat, holding her close, whispering things to calm her down.
And then the casket was gone.